Many public bathrooms in business establishments such as offices and restaurants have soap dispensers that include soap-filled bottles mounted under the counter next to the sinks. The dispensers have spouts that are disposed above the counter and are attached to the under-mounted bottles so that soap can be pumped from the respective bottles. Typically, large holes are bored into the counter so that the spout and bottle can be securely attached to one another to form the dispenser assembly. There are several drawbacks to this type of dispenser assembly. First, it is difficult to determine when the under-mounted soap bottle is empty or running low on soap because the bottle is not visible above the counter. Typically, a person has to go underneath the counter and unscrew the bottle to determine the amount of soap in it, which is labor-intensive and can be unsanitary. Also, the soap bottles are typically not disposable and must be refilled with soap. The process of pouring soap into the bottles can also be labor-intensive and messy.
Many operators of public bathrooms have explored replacing the prior art soap dispensers as described above with new soap dispensers that do not have the noted drawbacks. For example, some operators have used stand-alone soap dispensers that rest on top of but are not affixed to the countertop. Those dispensers, however, are often stolen by consumers who use them in their homes. Further, when the prior art dispensers are replaced with new means for delivering soap, the hole in the counter from the prior art dispenser remains and can be very unattractive.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for a soap dispenser system that can easily be refilled or replaced and that utilizes existing counter holes that were used for the prior art soap dispensers.